


who needs pictures?

by parkrstark



Series: Brad Paisley: Hits Alive [1]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Angst, Bullying, Canonical Character Death, Disney References, Disney World & Disneyland, Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Just a collection of ficlets, Movie Night, Peter wears Tony's MIT sweatshirt, Pictures, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Post-Spider-Man: Homecoming, Protective Tony Stark, Songfic, Star Wars References, each chapter inspired by a different brad paisley song
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-08
Updated: 2019-02-19
Packaged: 2019-10-24 08:17:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,902
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17700761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/parkrstark/pseuds/parkrstark
Summary: Traditions are traditions.Tony and Peter took them very seriously.A collection of ficlets, all inspired by songs on Brad Paisley's album, Who Needs Pictures.





	1. Long Sermon

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to my newest project I really don't need but kat convinced me to do anyway.  
> if you don't know by now, I would die for Brad Paisley. So this is my brad paisley project. Each chapter of this fic will be a different ficlet inspired by a song from the album, Who Needs Pictures.  
> The series will be all of his albums...so get ready for a ride. 
> 
> Chapter one is based off the song, Long Sermon. I don't see either of them as particularly religious enough to go to Sunday mass, so I took my own spin on the lyrics.

“Peter,” Ned hissed under his breath, “if you shake your leg anymore, it’s going to fall off. Or you’re gonna put a hole in the floor.”

Peter would stop it if he could, but it was like his leg had a life of its own as it bounced anxiously. He used his hand to press down on his knee until it stopped moving. “Sorry,” he whispered. 

“As soon as the lovebirds are finished, we’ll continue.” 

Ned and Peter both whipped their heads to stare at Michelle. She was sitting at the head of the table, acting as Decathlon president. She never looked happy, but now she looked more displeased than usual. 

“We weren’t--.” 

Flash’s obnoxious laughter interrupted Peter. “Hey, Penis, can’t keep yours in your pants long enough to pay attention?” 

Peter felt his face burn red as the rest of the team members giggled at Flash’s teasing. “We weren’t doing anything.” 

“Well, you weren’t paying attention either. And if we’re going to beat Brooklyn in next week’s regional competition, we all need to be paying attention.” She raised her eyebrows, daring him to argue. He didn’t want to. 

“Right. Sorry.”

Michelle gave him one last look before turning back to her book, reading out challenge questions. The minute he looked up at the clock on the wall, anything she was saying was white noise. 

Just another hour. He could last. 

 

\--

 

“Mr. Stark, are you even paying attention?” 

Tony looked up from the phone in his hand, hidden underneath the table and plastered on his best bullshit smile. “Sure am, sweetie.” 

Pepper kicked his ankle under the table so hard he winced. He didn’t need to look at her to know she was glaring a strong set of daggers at him. 

The man across from him pursed his lips at the nickname but didn’t argue. After all, this was the board of directors for Tony’s companies. He was in charge of the thing. If he was getting a little distracted during the meeting, who was anyone to stop him?

“We were going over this year’s budget for the R&D Department.” 

“Uh huh. Sure were,” Tony agreed even though he had no idea what the hell anyone had talked about today.

The man hesitated. “We were wondering if you had any input.” 

“You’re doing a great job,” Tony said, hoping that was satisfying enough. The groan from Pepper told him he wasn’t.

She leaned forward, using her best apologetic, sorry my fiance is a dumbass voice, “Why don’t you repeat the numbers you had for us?”

The man nodded and started reading off lots of numbers. Tony had to stop himself from rolling eyes. He pulled his phone back out and quickly typed out a message:  _ i will pay for u college education if u fake a life-threatening emergency right now _

He double checked that it was on vibrate before pressing it against his thigh and looking back up to the meeting going on. He glanced at Pepper and saw her already staring back with a glare. He gave her a cheeky smile. 

His phone vibrated. 

He waited a few seconds before casting his eyes down with moving his head to read the response:  _ ur already paying for college.  _

Tony’s lip quirked up in a grin.  _ So where’s the emergency? U need iron man asap _

Immediately, the typing bubble popped up for a few seconds.  _ 45 minutes, drama queen.  _ Then there were two messages following it before Tony could respond.  _ Now hush  _ and  _ I’m trying to learn.  _

Tony rolled his eyes, ready to type out a response when the clearing of a throat caught his attention. He turned to look at Pepper and she didn’t look happy as she held out her hand. Tony let his shoulders stop as he typed out one last message:  _ nevermind. Busted by the warden. _

He handed Pepper the phone and turned his attention back to the meeting.

These next 45 minutes were going to last a lifetime. 

 

\--

 

“You know the rules, Parker.”

Peter’s head snapped up and he immediately tried to shove his phone under his thigh. “I was just texting Aunt May,” he said, hoping Michelle didn’t push it. 

“Whatever, loser. Tell her you’ll be free at 4:30. We’re busy.” 

Peter went to send a message back, yelling at Tony for getting him in trouble, but his last received message and laughed. Karma.

Once he settled that, Michelle said, “6 noble gases. Go.” 

“Helium, Neon, Argon, Krypton, Xenon, and Radon,” Peter answered easily. 

“Oh, come on,” Flash whined. “Give him a hard one. My cousin could answer that and he still shits his pants.” 

“I fail to see the correlation,” Michelle said. “Seeing as you do the same thing and couldn’t tell the difference between a noble gas and the gas that comes out of your ass when you do.” 

Peter covered his mouth as he laughed along with the rest of the team. 

“Fuck off, you’re all assholes.” 

“Can we please get back to the questions?” Betty asked though she was trying to fight a smile. \

“Flash, you’re such a smart-ass, What is the difference between centripetal acceleration and centrifugal force?” 

Peter was staring at the hand tick by agonizingly slow before Michelle even finished asking the question. 

 

\--

 

“Yes, any time. Of course,” Tony said after he finally shook the hand of the last person in the room. He leg was bouncing in impatience. It already ran 7 minutes past and now everyone wanted to have another conversation with him afterward? 

Once it was just him and Pepper, he couldn’t even leave before she grabbed him by the arm. “You need to be more professional.” 

He groaned, trying to get out of the room. “Oh, come on, Pep. I am.”

“Being Tony Stark does not give you permission to sleep through your meeting like you’re in high school again.”

“I wasn’t sleeping.” 

She narrowed her eyes, daring him to continue. He didn’t want to. 

“Okay, I’m sorry. Pay attention next time. Got it. Can I go now, teach?”

“You’re ridiculous, you know that right?”

“Sure do.”

Sighing, she said, “Fine. Give me a kiss and then you’re free.”

He hurried forward t press a kiss against her lips before he was hurrying out of that room. He checked his watch. It was almost close to 5. Shit. 

“FRIDAY is the food on its way?” 

“Yes, boss.” 

“TV on? Movie queued?” 

“Yes, boss.” 

Tony smiled, pulling off his tie as he hurried to his personal floor in the tower. “We’re running a bit behind schedule, but we’ve got this.” 

Tradition was tradition and he had to keep it. 

 

\--

 

“Can’t you go any faster?” Peter asked, leaning back against the passenger seat. 

“Kid, you’re literally sitting right next to me with the same view. Do you see that traffic? I’m going as fast as I can,” Happy said, not taking his eyes off the road. 

Peter leaned his head against the window, groaning as the shine shined down on him. “It’s almost 5!” 

“Maybe if you didn’t take a year and a day to leave after practice, I wouldn’t have gotten stuck.”

“I had to find my backpack.” 

“Oh?”

“Flash hid it in the library and I had to find it,” Peter explained with a sigh. It had taken him almost 20 minutes. And now he was running late. 

Happy’s hands tightened on the steering wheel just a bit more. “And why can’t I go inside to pick you up next time?”

Peter rolled his eyes. Ever since the Vulture incident, Happy had grown pretty protective over him. “Becuase I don’t need you fighting my battles. It’s fine.”

Happy looked like he wanted to argue, but he didn’t. 

“And don’t tell Mr. Stark, please. He’ll get all upset and I’ll get the bully speech again.”  

“He only worries, kid. We all do.” 

Peter sighed. “Just...not today. Please? I’m not hurt. No wounds, physically or emotionally. Nothing to tattle on.” 

Happy groaned. “Fine. But you gotta start standing up for yourself, Peter. You’re not some dick’s punching bag.”

Peter closed his eyes as Happy continued on about why Peter couldn’t let himself be pushed around. He’d rather get the Bully speech now than later with Tony. They had some time to kill in traffic anyway. 

 

\--  

 

The clock struck 5:12 just as Tony was jumping over the couch. The food was all set up on the table, he had his sweats and a t-shirt on, and the movie was waiting. All he need was--

“Hey, Mr. Stark! Sorry, I’m late! Traffic was a bitch!” Peter said, out of breath as he hurried out of the elevator. 

“Language!” Tony said with a smile. 

Peter launched onto the couch just as Tony had done seconds earlier. His shoes were already kicked off and he was dressed in his comfy Friday clothes: gym sweats and Tony’s MIT sweatshirt. 

He fell against the couch, tucking into his normal spot next to Tony where he could lean close and Tony could wrap an arm around him. “Ready for the weekend to start, kiddo?”

“Never thought I’d make it,” he said, already resting his head on his shoulder. 

“Well, we made it, bud.” 

“And we’re not moving until Sunday night. So I hope you've got a good list of movies planned. And nowhere else to be” 

Tony grinned, ruffling his hair. “Can’t imagine being anywhere else.” 

  
  
  
  



	2. me neither

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for derogatory language

“Yeah, he’s pretty cute,” Tony said in a low voice.

Peter startled so hard, he almost dropped the cup he was holding in his hand. Good thing he had that sticky factor to keep the glass secure in his hand. He turned to look at his mentor with wide eyes, trying his best to look confused. “What?”

Tony raised his eyebrows with a little grin. “You’re too smart to play dumb, Parker.” 

Peter held his eye contact for a moment before sighing. He knew he wasn’t be subtle. He was probably drooling down his chin, staring at that boy a few tables down. 

They were seated at the restaurant side of a nearby arcade and only a few feet away, there was a boy sat with all his friends as they snacked on a tray of buffalo wings. He wasn’t just cute; he was gorgeous. Peter got lost every time he looked over at stared into his eyes. It was like the ocean. Such a beautiful, crystal clear blue--.

“Earth to Petey!” 

Snapping in front of his eyes dragged his attention back to the table he was seated at now. Tony looked incredibly amused. “Sorry.” He knew his face was as red as the ketchup on his french fries. 

“Don’t apologize, kiddo. You got a little crush. It’s cute.” Tony’s face softened and he didn’t look like he was going to tease Peter anymore. 

Peter looked away from him and turned his attention back to his dinner. He picked up a chicken finger and poked it around the ketchup. “It’s fine. Nothing’s gonna come of it anyway.” 

“Not sitting over here it’s not.”

Peter frowned, looking up. “Well, I’m not moving sooo…”

Tony huffed, rolling his eyes. “This why I’m never going to be a grandparent.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes. Because you refuse to put yourself out there. You gotta take a chance, kiddo.”

“I’m not going over there,” Peter said, his palms growing sweaty at just the idea.

Tony leaned back in his seat. “Why not? What if he’s the future Mr. Parker? Just gonna let him slip away?”

Peter rolled his eyes, his lip quirking in a small smile. “I’m 16, Mr. Stark. I highly doubt I’m going to find my love 3 tables down at Dave and Busters.”

“Never know, squirt. Maybe he’s the one.” Tony shrugged, taking a sip from his soda. 

“We’re not finding out,” Peter said, directing his attention back to his food. Maybe if he didn’t look at him, then he’d let it go. 

He wasn’t lucky enough. “C’mon, kiddo. What’s the worst that could happen? He could say no and you’ll never see him again.”

“I don’t think I’d live through the mortification,” Peter said, huffing slightly. 

Tony paused. “If I didn’t put myself out there, I wouldn’t be with Pep.”

“Different situations. That was  _ Pepper, _ this is some random kid in Dave and Busters.” Some random, gorgeous kid. 

“Hardly--,” Tony started, but then he suddenly cut himself off, leaning forward. “His two friends just left. Go.” 

Peter’s eyes widened. “What?”

“He’s alone. Go say hi,” Tony urged and Peter glanced over and saw that he was in fact, alone at the table. Tony noticed his hesitation and said, “You”re a handsome kid, Pete. He’d be lucky to have you go over there.”

Peter’s hope grew just a little. “Really?”

Tony nodded, smiling.

Peter smiled back and straightened his shoulders. “Okay. I’m gonna try it.” 

Tony patted his arm, giving him an encouraging grin. “You’re gonna do great, bud. If he says yes, I’ll get lost and only come back to cover your bill. If it doesn’t work out, then no sweat. You know how many times I was turned down?”

Peter raised his eyebrows. “Who would turn down Tony Stark?”

“People with self-respect,” Tony said as a joke, but Peter knew there was seriousness behind it. Sometimes he forgot Tony wasn’t always the man he was. He had his bachelor playboy days. It was just hard to imagine Tony being anything different than the man he knew. “Now go over there before you lost your chance.”

Peter nodded his head and hurried to stand up, straightening the Firefly shirt he was wearing. “How do I look?”

“Like Peter. Now go,” Tony said, giving him a little shove. 

Peter gave him one last smile before walking over to the other table. He took a steadying breath, looking over his shoulder to see Tony giving him a small thumbs-up. Tony’s faith in him was enough to give him the confidence to cross the last of the distance and stop by the table with a small smile. “Hi.”

The boy looked up from his cell phone, looking confused. Peter felt his heart skip a beat seeing those eyes looking into his. “Hello…”

_ Shit. Peter didn’t have a plan.  _ “I like your sweatshirt,” he said dumbly. 

The boy looked at him like he was crazy. Which Peter didn’t blame him for because who the hell came over to a booth just to tell a stranger they liked the plain black sweatshirt he was wearing? “Uh-- thanks.”

“No problem,” Peter said, frozen in his spot. He wasn’t sure what else to say. He felt like an idiot. Next time, he was wearing an earpiece and Tony was going to help him flirt. 

The boy cleared his throat. “Is there something I can do for you? Are you lost?”

Peter blinked. “No-- I just wanted to come over--.”

Before he could finish, the friends came back. One of them slapped Peter on the shoulder as he sat back down in the booth. “Who’s your friend, Jack?”

The boy, Jack, turned to look at Peter. “Not sure. Was just asking.”

Any confidence Peter had was gone as he stood there, three sets of eyes staring at him expectantly. He felt his face burn red. “Uh, well, um…”

Something clicked in the boy’s mind then. “Oh-- oh, I’m flattered, but I’m kinda celebrating my boy’s birthday right now.”

Not an immediate rejection. “I mean that’s fine. I’m here with someone anyway, maybe we could hang out after--.”

“Can’t hang out. We’ve got a movie to catch.”

Peter waved his hand. “Me neither. I’m feeling a bit tired anyway…” He trailed off, not wanting to quit just yet. “Do you want to maybe play a game of air hockey before we go? They’ve got the four player version so we can all play.”

“No, thank you.”

Shaking his head, Peter said, “Yeah, me neither. Hate that game.” He paused. “But, I could give you my number and we can--.”

“I don’t have a phone.”

_ Me neither  _ was on the tip of his tongue until the words set in. Peter stared at the cell phone on the table in front of him, the one he’d been playing on. “What, but--.”

The boy sighed. “I was trying to be nice about this-- here, come here.” He gestured for Peter to lean in and Peter did so hesitantly. “I’m not a faggot.” 

Peter felt his stomach churn a million different violent directions. He could still hear the obnoxious laughter of the sound of his heart thumping in his ears. He jerked backwards, feeling like he was going to sick. He could only stare, unsure of what to even say to that. 

Jack was grinning, the laughter from his friends egging him on. “I’m sorry. I tried to let you down easy, but you didn’t wanna hear it. It’s big no from me.”

Peter stared and stared. 

“Are you deaf?”

Before he could hear that word again, his feet dragged him away from the danger and to safety. Tony. He fell into the booth across from him and stared down at his lap. He didn’t want Tony to see the tears pooling in his eyes. He focused on watching his hands shake against his lap. 

“How it go, bud? I saw you blushing up a storm.”

Peter stayed quiet. 

“And he whispered something? How cute.” He felt Tony gently nudged his ankle with his foot, but he didn’t lift his head up. He watched a tear fall down from his nose and land on his hand. It still shook.

“Can we leave?” He asked, failing to keep his voice steady. 

“What happened?” Tony asked immediately, all humor gone. 

“I want to leave.”

“We can go-- Peter, what did he say to you?”

“He’s not a faggot,” Peter whispered, the word cutting into him like a sharp blade. 

Tony joined his silence. And then, “I’m gonna kill him.”

“No,” Peter said, his head shooting up. “Please don’t. Let’s just leave. Please.”

“Of course, kiddo,” Tony said, standing up. “We’re outta here, just do me a favor, okay? Hold back those tears for just a few more minutes. Just like three. Then when we get to the car, you can let them all fall, alright?”

Peter felt like an idiot. Of course Tony didn’t want to be seen with a crying teenager. Even if he had a hoodie and sunglasses on, there was chance someone could recognize them. He wiped his eyes quickly. “Uh huh. Sorry--.”

“No, don’t apologize. No. But I’m gonna make him feel like a pile of shit.” 

“What?”

In a moment, Tony shift from Tony to Tony Stark. He fixed his sunglasses so they were on the tip of his nose and he pulled down the hoodie. Peter didn’t recognize the man in front of him. This was the Tony that he showed off to the media. 

He stood up, sniffing once, looking around as he dropped a few bills on the table. Peter stumbled to his feet as his eyes dried. He stared at Tony in shock. It wasn’t the first time Peter had seen him put up this facade, but this was the first time he’d done it not in front of cameras. 

Tony wrapped an arm around his shoulder and steered him towards that table again. Peter’s heart beated a little faster, but he was safe. He was under Tony’s arm. He was even keeping him on the other side so he didn’t have to be close to them. 

He stopped by the table and made a show of looking the kid up and down. He took his sunglasses off his face, letting out a laugh. He turned to Peter and said, like the kid wasn’t staring and sitting right there _.  _ “Good thing he isn’t your type. I’d hate to see you stoop low enough to humor him on even one date.”

Peter heard the boys whispering about how  _ Tony Stark  _ was at their table, humiliating their friend. 

Tony turned back to Jack and stared at him as he made a sound of disgust. “You could do so much better. Peter, you’re on your way to be the smartest, youngest billionaire in the world. He’s on his way to cleaning the toilets in the back of this place until he dies. Doubt any college is gonna what a homophobic asshole in their school.”

Jack started sputtering out something, but Tony was putting his glasses back on his face and leading Peter out of the restaurant only seconds after. They didn’t stop until they were in Tony’s car, parked towards the back of the lot. Peter was sitting in the passenger seat and Tony was kneeling just besides him. Peter looked back at him and his Tony was back. 

“Hey, kiddo. All done. Just had to damage the kid’s ego permanently.” He gave Peter a smile, but Peter couldn’t return it. He tried, but all the tears he managed to hold off came back. Tony’s face softened immediately. “Oh, Pete, come here.” 

He leaned forward and pulled Peter into a hug. Peter hugged him back, pressing his face against his shoulder. “I was so embarrassed.”

“Don’t be. He was an asshole. And I doubt he’ll remember anything about tonight other than Tony Stark putting him in his place.” 

“He--He was...I was so  _ stupid _ . I didn’t think--.”

Tony thread a hand through Peter’s hair, pulling him closer in his arms. “You are not stupid, Peter Parker. You were taking a chance and I’m so proud of you.”

“He called me a f--fa--.” Peter couldn’t even say the word without choking out another sob. 

“Because he’s an asshole with a tiny dick and he can only make himself feel better by treating other people like shit.” Tony started to rub his back soothingly. 

“I’m sorry.”

“No. We’re not apologizing. You aren’t.” He sighed. “Me though? I shouldn’t have pushed you. I’m sorry, kid.”

“Don’t blame you.”

“Course you don’t…” He rubbed Peter’s back once more before pulling away. “Don’t listen to him. He’s probably just as gay as a rainbow and has a giant crush on one of his buddies at that table and knows he’ll never have a chance.”

Peter laughed a little, wiping the snot from his nose before it could get bad. Tony used his thumb to wipe the tears from his cheeks. “Really?”

“Yes. Really. He will die alone and miserable.”

Peter sniffled, looking down at his lap. “Thanks, Mr. Stark.” 

“Don’t thank me. Now what do you say we get outta here? I don’t think a dickhole like him is worth ruining our night.”

Peter shook his head. “Nope.”

Tony grinned. “Good. Come on, if we hurry, we can catch Happy before he goes to bed. If you hide on the ceiling while I distract him, I think we can make him scream louder than Rhodey did.”

Peter laughed at the memory. “I don’t think that’s possible.”

Tony smiled softly. “Yeah, bud, me neither.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's not much to explain for this chapter. If you listen to the song, it's basically that story!   
> (I hope you guys actually are listening to these songs and enjoying them!)


	3. who needs pictures?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony finds Peter's camera.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, title of the chapter is the song! You can listen to it before or after you read!

 

> "Just forgotten photographs  
>  To remind me of the past  
>  But I can still see everything just fine  
>  And who needs pictures with a memory like mine"

It took him a while after everything happened to even go near Peter’s side of the lab. It had been months, maybe even a year already since he’d be gone. It felt like a million lifetimes. Tony lost track of time when all of the days merged into one long nightmare.

He only started looking through all of the stuff he had shoved in the desk drawers because May was looking for one of Peter’s old notebooks. She couldn’t find it in his bedroom and of course, the only other place that managed to collect all of the kid’s things was in the tower. Either in the spare room that had slowly turned into Peter’s or his section in the lab.

He didn’t mean to make it an all day affair, but every little thing he found had him distracted for a while.

 

He clicked on the old DS he had shoved in the top drawer and it still had his Animal Crossing game inside. Tony winced as he walked the little guy character (Peter named him Han Solo. Of course, he did) around the town, through the weeds that had taken over every spot on the ground. Peter used to always make sure to check his town routinely so there was never one weed in sight.

There was a plastic spoon in the bottom drawer that once lit up when you clicked the button. It was red with a faded cartoon picture of both Iron Man and Spider-Man on it. Peter had gotten it out of a box of cereal when the public first started noticing Spider-Man and Iron Man’s unlikely partnership. He had it hidden in here so no one ever used it and “tainted its awesomeness”.

Peter kept his fidget toy, one of many, on his desk. It had been a present from Tony when he noticed how the kid was always fidgeting. Especially when he was sitting in the lab doing nothing else but homework or something that didn’t involve much moving. He threw it to the kid one day after school nonchalantly. He’d been hesitant to use it until Tony told him about the collection of stress balls he had; there wasn’t ever a time when he didn’t have one in his pocket. Tony had spoiled the kid with dozens of fidget toys; some he loved, some he liked, and some he wasn’t a big fan of. When Tony was in a store, usually a gas station, they’d sell them by the cash register and Tony bought one he thought Peter would like. He even ordered special _Star Wars_ ones.

When he reached the camera however, he froze. Of course, it had its own special drawer. Peter took care of that thing like it was his literal baby. He used to talk to it sometimes. He named it...Tony thought hard to Peter got it for his birthday from May (she had saved up months to get it for him and the look on his face when he opened it was well worth, even Tony knew). He had been there, but Peter hadn’t named it until a few days. He claimed he needed to pick a name that felt right. Four days after his birthday, he walked into the lab with the strap around his neck and holding the camera tucked safely in his hands against his chest.

_“Meet Paisley!”_

_“Finally named it, kid?”_

_“Named_ her, _Mr. Stark.”_

Tony smiled at the memory, lifting the camera up and brushed away the layer of dust that covered the screen. He tried the power button, but nothing happened. Dead. He sighed, ready to put it back in the drawer when something stopped him. He turned it carefully in his hands and popped open the SD card insert.

He put the camera in the drawer and then went over to his main desk where he had a computer capable of showing the contents of the SD card. He stuck it in and waited for the monitor to load the pictures.

 

The first on the screen hit hard.

Peter was staring right at the camera smiling so widely. And with the high quality the camera took pictures in and his compute showed pictures on, it was almost like Peter was right in front of him again. He reached a hand out and his fingers hit the screen.

Peter had a weird tradition of “baptizing” each of his SD cards. He always took the same first picture. Whoever he was with when he replaced it, he threw an arm around their shoulder and took a selfie. Tony was usually the one caught, though he had a few with May, Ned, Happy, Rhodey, and Pepper.

Tony was in this one. He was staring down at one of his tablets, not giving the camera a glance. But Peter was there, next to him on the couch, pulling him in close and smiling. Tony wished he had looked up...just to see that smile on the kid’s face. But he didn’t. Because that had be a normal thing for Peter to do. Tony never thought there’d be a day where he wasn’t there to fill up empty SD card and start with an impromptu photo session.

He’d never get a chance to do that again.  
He took that moment for granted just as often as Peter took the picture.   

 

He swiped to the next photo and smiled. They were a lot miscellaneous shots of people and places Peter loved.

There was May raising a pair of chopsticks to her mouth as she sat across from him in what looked like a restaurant. Which Tony bet it was. Whenever she tried to cook, that’s usually where they ended up.

Ned sitting in a pile of hundreds of Legos they had dumped all over Peter’s bedroom floor.

A view of the city streets from a very high spot somewhere Peter perched to get the perfect shot.

Happy petting a orange cat, Murphy was his name if Tony remembered correctly, that sat on a counter of Peter’s favorite deli.

May and Pepper laughing as they sat on a couch, each with a champagne glass in their hands.

Endless photos of dogs in the park.

Tony sitting on Rhodey as they played Mario Kart, so he could win.

Ned making a funny face in the camera as he sat in a library with a book open in front of him.

Happy yelling out his window as they drove, Peter was sitting in the passenger seat.

A duck walking down a city street.

Tony working on something in his lab.

 

Peter liked taking candid shots of Tony in the workshop. Sometimes Tony was glancing at the camera from the corner of his eyes, but most times he had no idea the picture was being taken.

 _God, Tony. Why didn't you ever take a fucking second just to_ look? _Look up at what you had. The kid was always there. And now, he’d never be there again._

 

He swiped through the dozens of photos Peter took of Tony in the lab, mixed with a few of the bots hanging around.

(Tony’s favorite was the one he took himself. Peter, U, and Dum-E were sleeping on the floor in a sea of blankets Peter had set up for the four of them to watch a movie. He had made sure to drape a blanket over each of them.)

 

He smiled when he realized what the majority of this SD card was full of: Peter and Tony’s roadtrip to Florida over the summer. They had a big trip planned to Disney World for the kid’s 17th birthday. He’d always wanted to go to Disney World and one of the parks was practically throwing up _Star Wars._ There was a ride, character meet and greets, parades, firework, shows, and more just for this movie.

So, it was a no brainer where Peter was going to celebrate his day.

Except there was one problem: Peter was deathly afraid of planes. Ever since the night he crashed the Stark plane on Coney Island. So, flying to Florida was not an option. At least not for Peter.

Tony remembered when they surprised him with the tickets and told him about the private jet that would get them there in no more than 2 hours. He hands started to shake. Tony didn’t hesitate before saying Peter didn’t have to take the plane. (“I’m thinking about driving down, if you want to join. I could use the company”)

Sure, one day, Tony would help Peter get over his fear of flying, but he didn’t need to do that when he was going to celebrate his birthday. He didn’t want the kid to dread the trip. So, Tony and Peter left two days before everyone else did and they started their roadtrip.

It was the best trip Tony had ever taken. He enjoyed the car ride to and back more than the actual vacation, probably.

 

The collection of vacation photos started with Tony packing the car with their suitcases. Tony was looking over his shoulder as a bag on the top was about to fall over on his head. (“A little help, Parker?”).

Tony steering the wheel with one hand and shoving a fast food burger in his mouth with the other. (“Who the fuck puts mustard on a burger? Are their taste buds that dead?”)

A random horse Peter had made Tony stop driving for suddenly by screaming, “Stop!” (“Christ, Parker, you’re lucky no one was behind me. Don’t do that again.” “But he’s so pretty, Mr. Stark.”)

Peter’s dirty converse kicked up on the dash and a blur of Tony’s hand, swatting his feet off. (“Unless you want to clean the dashboard with your toothbrush, get your filthy feet off.”)

A sunset Peter made him spend 10 minutes driving to get the perfect shot. (“Peter, the sun is going to be gone by the time you find a spot you like.”)

One that Tony took of Peter fast asleep in the passenger seat, drooling slightly with his head at angle that couldn’t have been good for his neck. (“How do you even sleep like that?”)

Then the next one was Peter sleeping again, this time after Tony leaned over and fixed him so he was in a comfortable position. He leaned the seat back, laid his head in a normal position, and covered him in a blanket. (“See? I take care of you.”)

 

He continued to skim through the pictures and found the selection of pictured from the actual trip itself. Peter had gone _crazy_ with photos. LIke he snapped a picture of every little thing. He was like those tourists they made fun of in Times Square.

Tony and May had taken a lot of them too when Peter wanted to be in the pictures. The kid almost cried when he saw all the _Star Wars_ shit. There was a show that had an entire dedication to Han Solo, and Tony actually saw him wipe at his eyes quickly. Tony had rolled his eyes, ruffling the kid’s hair.

He continued through the hundred of pictures for what had to have been hours before he reached the last one. Tony packing a full car that overflowing with bags and bags of Disney souvenirs.

 

Tony didn’t realize he had been crying until there were no more photos to distract him. He sniffled and wiped his wet cheeks.

That was only one SD card...the kid had dozens in his drawer that Tony could look through.

He always took a picture of everything. His face was always behind the lens, taking a photo of something.

Tony told him to put the camera down and live in the moment, but Peter said he didn’t want to forget a single moment.

Tony didn’t understand how he could when it was all so clear in Tony’s mind. He could still close his eyes and remember what had happened in each photo before and after it was taken.

 

He didn’t need these photos to remember Peter.

Peter was the most vivid memory in his mind every time he closed his eyes.

Sometimes it was a blessing, sometimes it was a curse.

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so since this fic was inspired by my own personal love for Brad Paisley...it's a personal fic for me and if anyone cares, here are some little fun facts about this chapter. If you don't care, then the chapter is over and you can go! Maybe leave a comment? But, if you care here gooo,
> 
> -Brad Paisley debuted at the Grand Ole Opry a day before the day I was born (May 28, 1999) and he sang this song. I always loved this album becuase it was born the year I was.  
> -Animal Crossing is my shit and I hate weeds. Fight me.  
> -Yes, the camera is named after Brad Paisley. Peter didn't name it after him, but I did.  
> -Paisley is my future daughter's name  
> -my mom is a crazy scrapbooker and takes pictures of everything. everything. the little part where Peter "baptizes" his new SD cards? My mom does that everytime by taking a picture of one of her kids  
> -my brother had a huge tub full of hudreds of legos. we used to dump them on his floor and build for days until they were all gone. They would literally cover his entire floor  
> -sitting on my little brother is the only way i win mario kart  
> -that little bit with peter laying on the floor with the bots? this past christmas, surprsingly, all my siblings were under one roof again and the night before my brother left (he's in the military) we all wanted to cuddle up but there wasn't a bed big enough for the 5 of us so we covered the floor in blankets and slept there  
> -the entire disney section is me being a big nerd  
> -we roadtrip to disney every time form new york so the trip is long but i love it so much  
> -that horse's name is blue (love you kat)  
> -seriously that disney stuff is the disnerd in me begging to write a disney fic  
> -god i want to  
> -i cried when i saw the tribute to han  
> -even though we have a van, coming home from disney is always crazy because it's cramped with 7 people and all of the shit we come home with. my dad laughs at us all the time because he's got all the room in the world up front. little bitch.  
> -seriously though I'm gonna write that disney fic one day. But my nerd would come out.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you think below! If you give the song a listen, tell me how you like it!


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